ZIP 28110 vs ZIP 28173

This side-by-side compares ZIP 28110 (Monroe, NC) and ZIP 28173 (Waxhaw, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 28110 has a population of 50,365 at 151 people per square mile, while ZIP 28173 has 45,097 at 162 per square mile. That difference in population size and density alone reshapes how every other metric should be interpreted — a higher-income ZIP with 1,200 residents behaves very differently from one with 45,000.

On income and education, ZIP 28110 reports a median household income of $83,480 against $150,597 in ZIP 28173, with per-capita income of $34,343 vs $63,561. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 25.6% in 28110 and 58.2% in 28173. Poverty rate reads 11.3% vs 4.4%, and unemployment 3.4% vs 3.9% — these four fields alone drive most of the difference in the scorecard grades you will see for each ZIP.

Housing separates these two ZIPs further: median home value sits at $342,600 in 28110 versus $608,000 in 28173, with median rent of $1,376 and $1,776 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 75.0% vs 90.0%. When reading the comparison table below, focus on paired metrics rather than single winners — a ZIP with lower home values and lower income is not strictly "worse" if rent-to-income ratios and commute times land in the same zone. Every value is pulled from the exact same ACS table so the two columns are genuinely comparable.